Replaced right-side intermediate muffler three years ago only to find now that it is rotting according to my mechanic from the engine side of the pipes. Original on driver side is fine. Removing the intermediate is a huge job because the diff needs to be dropped to access the pipes and muffler.
Right now it is a barely imperceptible noise. but I assume it will grow over time.

Anyone know otherwise about a fix?

Anyone know a factory parts contact? I mean, come on, three years outside the rust belt?

All suggestions welcomed.

 

You'd be best to contact whomever you purchased/installed the part from.

 

First off, you need a new mechanic
You do not have to drop anything to access the exhaust system.
The OEM system is a sectional system using clamps. It is not welded from the cat back.

I suggest going to a muffler repair shop and getting it fixed.

As far as the part rusting, that should not happen on an OEM intermediate muffler.

Can I make a suggestion:
You will open the car up a bit if you remove the intermediate muffler all together............

 

+1 on the mechanic, and +1 on the disassembly, starts to make me wonder on his observation too.

 

The Jaguar original parts were made out of stainless steel and are therefore resistant to perforation from corrosion.


Cheaper aftermarket parts are usually a false economy. The aftermarket don't know how to tune and attenuate the appropriate frequencies the way Jaguar do.
You COULD remove them altogether but you'd probably introducing a boom somewhere in the engine speed range that Jaguar used those silencers to tune out/attenuate.


Good luck!

 

I agree that the quality of Jaguar stainless steel is abysmal. Here are the intermediates on my 2001 X308 photographed at five years old:



The results of a combination of our wet climate and road salt in Winter but that corrosion was unacceptable to me on a five year old vehicle.

These were subsequently replaced with heavily discounted items from Jaguar and the work was completed without any other disassembly. The leaking diff that can also be seen in the photo was a different and considerably more expensive matter!

Graham

 

Good News: I contacted Jaguar in NJ and they asked me to have a dealer tech look at it which I did. The dealership described the premature corrosion, sent photos to Jaguar of the pipe leading into the intermediate muffler or silencer and Jaguar sent me two $250 coupons to use at a Jag dealer for parts and labor.

I was grateful.

 

Awesome outcome !

 

I have a similar issue with my right side intermediate pipe. A previous owner had new pipe welded onto the right muffler but it's not stainless steel. The entire area around the weld is rusted through; there's a big hole at the weld and the pipe is split for about 6 inches leading away from the muffler. I did some reading and came across the idea to use aluminum cut-outs (from soda cans) and exhaust tape to cover the damaged area. It has worked like a charm for about 500 miles so far, We'll see how long it holds up